SMU Punches Ticket to AAC Championship Match; Tops [RV] Memphis, 1-0SMU to play in first championship match since 2004

STORRS, Conn. (SMU) – The No.3-seeded SMU women's soccer team advanced to the American Athletic Conference Championship match Friday, topping second-seeded [RV] Memphis, 1-0, at the Joseph J. Morrone Stadium. Junior midfielder Claire Oates scored in the 85th minute to break the scoreless game, and send the Mustangs to their first championship match since 2004. With the win, SMU improved to 13-5-2 overall, while Memphis fell to 14-4-1.

"One of the biggest keys was our ability to defend, stay compact and organized, and really limit their chances," SMU head coach Chris Petrucelli said. "They didn't have any great goal scoring chances in the game."

"It was going to come down to one goal at some point, and when we get a chance on those corners, Claire's pretty good," Petrucelli added. "We were able to create some opportunities as the game wore on. I think toward the end of the game, Vanessa Valadez started to really cause some problems [for the Memphis defense]. They managed to bottle her up the whole game, but she started to cause some problems late on the right flank, and that's where the corner came from."

With under six minutes left in regulation, Haley Thompson sent a curling corner kick into the box, where it got headed to Katharine Herron. The freshman played a perfect volley up to Oates, who headed it in past an unbalanced Maryse Bard-Martel. Oates is now tied for the team lead with 10 goals this season, and leads the team with six game-winning goals. She now has 20 career goals. Herron was awarded an assist, the second of her career.

Sophomore goalkeeper Catie Brown recorded her fourth clean sheet of the season, recording three saves. She lowers her goals against average to 1.05.

The win sends SMU into its first championship match since the entering the American Athletic Conference. The Mustangs will face top-seeded Connecticut on Sunday at 2 p.m. ET/1 CT. SMU tied then-No. 21 UConn, 0-0, earlier this season. The championship will air on ESPNU.